Survey: Wii Development Shrinking, iPhone Growing

A new 100-page survey released today by Game Developer Research shows that mobile development is on the rise while the Nintendo Wii is seeing a decline.

The 2009/2010 State of Game Development Survey polled over 800 industry professions "from North America and beyond" and responded to a series questions regarding, among others, current industry trends, development issues, and platform of choice.

The mobile gaming space has seen a large boost in development, mostly due to Apple's iPhone. 25 percent of developers say they're creating mobile titles, up from 12 percent last year, and three quarters of that group are focusing on iPhone and iPod touch development - twice the amount reportedly working on Nintendo DS and PSP titles.

Over 70 percent of developers are creating at least one PC or Mac title, which include browser-based web and social games. 41 percent of that group is also creating console titles. PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 remain steady from last year, with 69 percent creating Xbox 360 titles compared to 61 percent on PlayStation 3.

Wii development, however, has seen a significant decline from last year. Support for the console dropped from 42 percent in last year's survey to 30 percent.

"Like any other medium of entertainment, video game development is subject to change with the ebb and flow of the economy and any hot new trends, and this year's survey continues to reflect this evolution," said Simon Carless, Global Brand Director, Think Services Game Group.